A quick, mobile, hardworking, and versatile striker, with a lethal eye for goal, Di Natale can play anywhere along the front line; he has been deployed as a lone striker, out wide in an attacking trident, or even in a deeper, creative, supporting role. He is notable for his technical skills and for his ability to both score and create goals.[2][3] Di Natale earned the prestigious award of being the Serie ACapocannoniere — Serie A's highest goalscorer — for the 2009–10 and 2010–11 seasons.[4]

Despite previously announcing he would retire from professional football at the end of the 2013–14 Serie A season, Di Natale confirmed on 30 May 2014 that he would not retire and would continue to play on into the 2014–15 season.[5]

Unlike most strikers, Di Natale has enjoyed his most prolific seasons in front of goal well after the age of thirty.[6]

Also known as Totò,[7] Di Natale was born in Naples on 13 October 1977 to Salvatore, a professional painter, and Giovanna. He has two brothers, Paolo and Carmine, and two sisters, Michela and Anna. While playing for Empoli, at the age of 19, Di Natale met his future wife, Ilenia Betti, whom he married on 15 June 2002; the couple have two sons together, Filippo and Diletta.[8] In August 2010, he rejected a transfer to Italian giants Juventus because his children had grown up in Udine and his family was settled and enjoyed living there.[9]

Di Natale took financial responsibility of the disabled sister of Udinese teammate Piermario Morosini, who died on 14 April 2012 when he suffered sudden cardiac arrest while playing on loan for Livorno. Morosini's death left his sister with no other living relatives.[10]

Despite being born in Naples, Antonio Di Natale made the move north for his footballing career, joining Empoli's youth system. While at Empoli, he was loaned out three times, enjoying success with Viareggio in the 1998–99 campaign, where he scored 12 goals in 25 games for the Tuscan side. Upon his return to his parent club, Di Natale finally made his breakthrough into the first team squad and established himself as an integral member of the side. He netted six times in 25 appearances for Empoli during the 1999–2000 campaign, as Empoli finished in ninth place in Serie B.

Empoli won promotion to the Serie A in 2002, finishing in fourth place on 67 points.[11] They finished with 60 goals, the largest tally in the competition, and Di Natale finished as the club's top goalscorer with 16 league goals. In Empoli's first season back in the topflight, Di Natale helped the club fight off relegation by netting 13 times in the league.[12] This included a hat-trick in Empoli's 4–2 defeat of Reggina on 17 November 2002.[13] Following two seasons in the Serie A, Empoli were relegated back to the Serie B at the end of the 2003–04 campaign.[14]

He scored a brilliant lob in the fifth minute and a terrific volley in the 63rd with his "weaker" left foot. Forming a formidable attacking duo with Fabio Quagliarella, Di Natale improved his goal tally, becoming the focal point of the attack. In 2007, he was named captain of Udinese and his contract was extended to 30 June 2012.[16][17]

On 14 November 2010, Di Natale scored a hat-trick during a match against Lecce[22] and on 28 November, he scored a second consecutive home hat-trick during a match against hometown club Napoli.[23] On 8 May 2011, Di Natale struck two first half goals to give Udinese a 2–1 victory over Lazio and into fourth place with two games remaining to play.[24] Despite Di Natale missing a late penalty, with a 0–0 draw against champions Milan on the final day, Udinese secured fourth place and a spot in the playoff round of the Champions League.[25] During the 2010–11 season, Di Natale had the best strike rate of any player in Italy, scoring 28 goals in 36 games with a strike rate of 0.78 goals per game. This was also the third best strike rate in Europe, behind Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo and Barça's Lionel Messi.[26]

On 23 October 2011, Di Natale netted a brace in a 3–0 defeat of Novara, which sent Udinese to the top of the Serie A standings.[27] On 13 May 2012, Di Natale opened the scoring against Catania on the final matchday of the Serie A season and Diego Fabbrini added a second-half strike to secure four straight Serie A victories and ensure Udinese a place in next season's Champions League qualifying round.[28] On 4 July 2012 he signed a new 2-year contract with the club.[29]

Di Natale's first goal of the 2012–13 season came on 16 September 2012 when he scored Udinese's second goal within five minutes of the start of the game, but a red card to Andrea Lazzari and two lates goals from Siena condemned Udinese to a 2–2 draw.[30] On 6 January 2013, Di Natale notched a brace as Udinese downed 10-man Internazionale 3–0, lifting Udinese to eighth in the table.[31] In Udinese's next league match, on 13 January, Di Natale scored two more goals as his side defeated Fiorentina 3–1 to extend their streak of five unbeaten Serie A matches.[32] Di Natale scored his 150th Serie A goal for Udinese on 3 March, converting from close range after a cross from Luis Muriel, securing a 0–1 victory at Pescara.[33]

His last goal of the 2012–13 campaign came on the final matchday, on 19 May 2013, scoring Udinese's winning goal in a 5–2 thrashing of Internazionale, confirming the club's place in the UEFA Europa League for the following season.[34]

After Udinese's 3–1 loss to Hellas Verona on January 6, 2014, Di Natale told Sky Sports Italia he would retire at the end of the 2013–14 season. "I have already decided, in June I'll stop playing football. It's already established."[35]

On 8 March 2014, Di Natale scored his 185th Serie A goal, the winning strike in Udinese's 1–0 victory over Milan, to overtake Gabriel Batistuta on the all-time Serie A scoring charts.[36] He ended the 2013–14 season with 17 goals, making him the fourth-top goalscorer in Serie A at the age of 36.[37] On 30 May 2014, he decided not to retire.

Before the 2013–14 season Di Natale was offered a contract with an annual salary of €10 million by Guangzhou Evergrande, however, he declined it and chose to stay in Udinese.[38] Di Natale scored four goals in a 5–1 win over Ternana in the third round of the Coppa Italia on 23 August 2014.[39] On the 31 August in Udinese's opening Serie A match of the 2014-15 season, Di Natale scored two second half goals in a home win over newly promoted Empoli.[40] On 23 November 2014, Di Natale scored his 200th goal in his 400th appearance in Serie A.[41]

On February 2, 2015, Di Natale was offered an $8 million contract by a yet unnamed team in the MLS. Di Natale has been linked to MLS expansion club New York City FC.[42]

Di Natale made his debut with the Italian national team on 20 November 2002 in a friendly match against Turkey. He won few caps in later years, scoring his first goal on 18 February 2004 in a friendly match against the Czech Republic, a game which ended in a 2–2 draw.[43]

Di Natale took part at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where he was given the number 10 shirt. Italy was placed into Group F at the finals, drawing their first two group games by a score of 1–1 to Paraguay and New Zealand, respectively. In their final group game on 24 June 2010, he scored a goal in the 3–2 defeat against Slovakia, which resulted in Italy finishing bottom of its group.[46]

In 2012, Di Natale was included in the squad for UEFA Euro 2012, and after coming on in the first match against Spain, he scored the opening goal in a 1–1 draw, shooting right-footed past Iker Casillas after a pass from Andrea Pirlo.[47] It was the only goal that Spain conceded during the whole tournament. Italy reached the final of the tournament on 1 July at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev, when they lost to Spain 4–0.[48]

Following the tournament, Di Natale retired from international football with 11 goals scored from 42 games for the Azzurri.[49]